One of my favorite times of year is right around the corner: football season.

Every year, the so-called “experts” begin to incorrectly pick who will win the Super Bowl and some off the field issue is blown out of proportion and is beaten to death by the media (see: Brett Favre) because there aren’t any games to write about yet. It’s also the time of year I try to figure out how early or late in the season the Vikings will break my heart and leave me waiting for next football season. (I’m predicting an early January letdown.)

Anyway, as I look at successful teams across the NFL and try to figure out the parallels between them, one major characteristic stands out. With few exceptions, the team that wins the Super Bowl typically has a great defense. We definitely saw a great example of a team with a great defense as the Giants upset the Patriots in the Super Bowl.

Now, when we look at why ‘defense wins championships’ (as the old saying goes), there are two main reasons that come to mind. The obvious one, of course, is that if the other team can’t score, they can’t win; everybody knows that. But what isn’t as apparent is that the better your defense is, the more opportunities (possessions) it gives your offense to score, and the more opportunities the offense has, no matter how bad or how good they are, they’ll eventually put some points on the board. That’s why we see teams winning with mediocre offenses; the defense keeps feeding them the ball and eventually they capitalize on a scoring opportunity.

After that long winded example, the point I’m getting to is that using Four51 effectively is like having a great defensive football team; it levels the playing field. Whether you’re a large company or a small two person shop, effectively using Four51 not only makes serving your current customers more efficient, it can create more opportunities for new clients or additional services for your current ones because of your web presence and capabilities. It allows you to compete on the same playing field whether your other abilities (talented players in NFL speak) are the same as your competitors or not.

So, during this training camp, fine tune your Four51 skills so you’re ready to compete when the season starts.

Erik

Popularity: 10%

A few days ago, I had a conversation with a customer who had recently joined the Four51 network and was in the process of setting up a site for one of his clients. He was going through the storefront with the customer, but was running into all kinds of problems and couldn’t figure out why some things weren’t working how he thought they would. Needless to say, he grew quite frustrated and finally called me for help. We took a look at the site together and the deeper we got into the site, the further my belief was confirmed that training is a vital part of using the Four51 application effectively.

Part of what makes Four51 so valuable is the flexibility of the system and how that flexibility allows you to create a unique experience for each user who comes to access one of your sites. Naturally, with a system that provides that level of benefit, you’ll need to know how to setup and configure those options for your customers.

Customers usually have very specific needs and if you take the time to figure out what tools you have and how to use them, you’ll be able to satisfy your customers’ requests much more efficiently. Not only that, but you’ll be able to provide a better set of expectations instead of promising something that can’t be delivered exactly how the customer thought it would be. You will establish more credibility if you can answer questions and explain the details right on the spot.

Not only is training knowledge valuable when trying to satisfy current customers, but it will also make your organization much more effective in bringing aboard new clients. If you know how to use the administrative environment, you can easily setup an effective demo site that has the prospect’s logo, an appropriate theme and any other options that they may request for an online ordering interface. You can present a replica of what the customer already expects and impress them right from the start instead of giving the impression that you’re in over your head.

As with any new product or system, there is a learning curve involved for both the site consumer and the administrator. The faster you understand how things work and certain items need to be configured, the faster you will be able to use the Four51 application to build your business. Check out the training course listings on Access Four51 and see if you could benefit from the variety of courses we have to offer.

Erik

Popularity: 10%